05.25.07

ComputerWorld has just published an article which explores the recent events and also reiterates the serious issues that Novell introduced through its deal with Microsoft.

Some Linux users may be protected because, as part of its FUD campaign, Microsoft entered into a patent swap with Novell. According to Microsoft, Novell agrees that Microsoft has valid patent claims against Linux but the deal will keep Microsoft from suing any Novell Linux customers. Novell does not agree with Microsoft’s characterization, claiming that it does not agree that Microsoft has patents that Linux infringes.

This is, needless to mention, nothing new. The recent events, however, confirmed many of our long-held suspicions. In another article, Microsoft talks about the GPLv3. The company has become morbidly obsessed with it as its spokesmen continues to mention it in interviews.

Speaking to CXOtoday.com, a Microsoft spokesperson states that the latest draft of the General Public License version 3 (GPLv3) attempts to tear down the bridge that Microsoft has built between proprietary and open source software.

Microsoft has our deepest of sympathies. Is anyone still surprised that they use various proxies to attack GPLv3 like it was the plague? They do this in the most desperate of ways now, with shades of the infamous “Get the Facts” campaign.

In related news, Rick Lehrbaum, who is a prominent man in the Linux community (as well as a Ziff Davis executive) calls it a day and apt-get removes SUSE.

Which is the winning side and which is the losing side in the endless exchange of words, threats, and rebuttals? We have spotted evidence that suggests weaknesses thrive in the side of the offense, which is graduallylosing its appeal. Among the flood of encoraging news about increasing adoption of Free software, there is also plenty that mentions the recent set of attacks as a key indicator of success.

…there was one aspect of this whole circus that struck me immediately upon seeing the news. And that was that this whole effort of FUD on the part of Microsoft is a clear sign that they have given up. Microsoft has been fighting a war for the last several years, and this announcement about the 235 patents was as clear as a white flag that they have given up on ever winning that war.

Which war is it that I’m referring to? It’s the war over you, the IT worker and administrator.

Here is another one, which also bothers to mention Dell’s milestone — one which we have neglected to point out, until now.

One thing is for sure, and despite Microsoft’s official denials; open source software is the biggest threat the company faces to its world-beating business model.

This was further underlined with Dell’s announcement that it was shipping a range of desktops and notebooks with open source operating system Ubuntu preloaded.

Novell has appointed Naresh Shah as managing director of Novell India Development Centre in Bangalore. This appointment adds onto his current role in Novell as vice president of Global Engineering Strategy. Naresh brings to Novell over 20 years of experience in the technology industry in Asia. Prior to this, he was product manager for Lucent for Mexico, with added responsibilities of managing Lucent’s relationship with AT&AT and its joint ventures in the Asia Pacific region. Novell’s India Development Centre is the second largest R&D centre for Novell worldwide and it is continuing its rapid expansion plans through an aggressive hiring programme.

Open-source advocate Bruce Perens said he would be looking to see exactly what Novell was given through the deal and whether there is any requirement for the Linux vendor to defend Microsoft’s patent claims. “What I’m actually looking for is, to what extent was there a violation of faith?” he said.

Microsoft has claimed that Linux violates more than 235 of its patents, and because the deal offers patent protection to Novell users, it is seen as potentially driving a wedge in the Linux community. “Novell had a choice here, and Novell’s choice was to be in the same boat with the rest of the free software community, or not,” Perens said.

Based on an initial reading of the documents, Perens said the deal does not appear to provide full patent protection to Linux users. “Novell did not get complete rights regarding Microsoft patents,” he said. “For example, office productivity applications are specifically excluded. … OpenOffice.org is excluded by name, WINE and Open-Xchange are excluded by name,”

In the time it will likely take you to read this article, Microsoft will have made $500,000 in net profit. It’s instructive to note that the majority of that profit comes from its Windows operating system and Office suite of business software. Not coincidentally, those are the two product lines most threatened by Linux operating systems and Open Office.

Given the high stakes involved, it’s not surprising that Microsoft would take steps to protect its turf. In fact, it makes perfect sense. Let’s face it: If you were making $1 billion a month, what would you do? Perhaps engage in rhetoric and hyperbole to generate some old-fashioned FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt)? Just looking at the numbers, it’s easy to see that even if the scare campaign merely delays a customer’s migration from Windows to Linux by a single day, Microsoft is $34 million dollars better off.

As far as the statement from the the Linux Foundation, they have called on Microsoft ("a rational actor") to "work with the Linux ecosystem to restore confidence in the patent system by making sure they are issued only for truly unique, innovative, and novel functions that advance the state of the art." The statement also includes not-so-subtle reminders to Microsoft that they are not the only people to hold significant patent portfolios.